Hog Roast 2007

We had a blast and it was like nothing we've ever done before. 50+ people, 8-10 dogs, a keg of cold beer and a 170 lb pig. Chris' family does it every year and they were kind enough to invite his friends from Portland.

We arrived on Saturday afternoon to see Tent City in the front yard.


When we walked around back, they had a side yard where the pig would be going. They dug out a 3x5 foot pit about 2-3 feet deep. They put a metal grate level with the ground so the spent ashes could filter through. Then they used cinder blocks to pile around the pit and hold the coals. Everyone was to bring a bag of charcoal. An uncle had made the rotisserie using an old refrigerator motor and some chain. They've used it for years, but apparently this year was too much for it and the whole thing was destroyed. More on that later. Here are the coals just getting started:


From the side yard, you go down a small path to a large backyard and the Alsea river. Here's a view from the river looking back towards the house. The pig sideyard would be on the right. We played lots of games in the backyard and spent most of our time back there:


One of the games people played all weekend is Cornhole. It's from the midwest and one of our friends made it -- he's from Arkansas; I can't believe I actually know someone from Arkansas. Anyway, it's basically "get the beanbags in the hole/on the board" mixed with a bit of shuffleboard. People played it nonstop all weekend. Including a certain husband of mine.


A group of people had gone crabbing that morning, so there were lots of fresh crabs to eat. Just like back east but without the old bay. I was in heaven.




They also had a giant bowl of crawdads they caught from the river out back. I've never seen so many crawdads in my entire life. Here's me eating them. I liked the claws best. Most people saw them as too much work -- some would only the tails, leaving me with lots and lots of claws. Note, the giant bowl on the left was full; the bowl on the right are all of our leftover shells.:


Meanwhile, there were 8-10 dogs running around. It was a dog and water park combined! Plus food! It was Kinley's own little version of heaven. Here he is running down to the river to see some other dogs. Our tent is behind him on the left.


One of the dogs had been taught to "smile" to get treats. Here she is smiling:



So where is this pig, you ask? Right here. 18 hours of roasting compressed into a few pictures. Chris had done 100 lbs of pig in the past but upped it to 150 given the number of people. When the pig arrived, it was 170 lbs.

170 lbs of pig all dressed up:


Putting the pig on the spit. Pretty gnarly. You go through the skull and out the back end. Steel pole plus hammer equals good eats?


Here's the pig just after it went on the spit. Apparently 170 lbs of pig can immediately bend a steel pole. But it does not rip a cigarette from the pig's mouth. That's addiction for you.


At first the skin just starts to char. Very unappetizing. Since the motor broke and the pole bent, we had to hand-turn it every 40 minutes.


Plus, we had to keep basting the pig to keep it juicy. We used a watered down barbecue sauce and beer. Here's James basting the pig:


But all that basting and rotating eventually pay off. Here's the front of the pig before it got a lemon in its mouth:


And the backside of it around midnight.



I went to bed around 4 am. I couldn't make it up all night. Luckily 2 persevered until being relieved at 5:30. The pig was finished cooking around noon (as determined by thermometer in the ham) and was pulled to a picnic table. They covered it and allowed it to rest for about an hour. Even after all that time, it was still hot to the touch. Dogs started circling. They knew. Apparently some juice started dripping. Kinley started licking the ground while other dogs were licking his head onto which more juice was dripping.

When it was time, we started carving and picking the meat to be served. I have never pulled pork in a bikini before. Now I can say that I have.



Once the meat was pulled and the bones mostly cleaned, each dog got one. They were so happy. The meat was delicious and there was quite a bit left over. I think it's partly due to it being so hot on Sunday. Hot temperatures do not make a person want to eat hot pork. I slept most of the day on Sunday and we moved our tent to Tent City before crashing at 10 pm. I've never slept so well in a tent in my entire life.

Many thanks to Chris and his family for hosting us.